Post by Ringside Junkie on Nov 27, 2007 16:24:29 GMT -5
GCW REPORT - 11/24
By: Larry Goodman
Courtesy of www.1wrestling.com
Great Championship Wrestling ran their weekly show in Phenix City, Alabama under less than ideal circumstances. Their ring announcer quit, one of their tag team champions got stabbed, and their heavyweight champion is on unscheduled tour of Japan.
This was something of a smoke and mirror show. They couldn’t do much around the titles with Bull Buchanan in Japan and one half of Hot Like Lava, Shaun Banks at home recuperating. No Chris Stevens either (that always sucks), but they did well with what they had, which was Michaels Incorporated aplenty.
Attendance was no better than 75. The low turnout may have been related to heavy competition from the Alabama/Auburn game. The good news was these people were the diehards, and they were hotter than most of the larger crowds I’ve experienced at the Gr8 Sk8 Plex.
GCW Commissioner Scrappy McGowan opened the show gloating about how he was responsible for the firing of ring announcer Billy Roper.
McGowan introduced Charles Neal as the new ring announcer. Neal brought up his participation in the “Voice of GCW” contest. A few factoids Neal didn’t mention: a) he finished third b) winner Steve Neal ended up getting fired and c) the second place finisher was Roper. I mostly remembered Neal because attended the shows at the old building in Columbus wearing a mask. He looked astoundingly like a smaller version of “Assassin” Jody Hamilton.
(1) “80s guy” John Bogie beat Ruben James in 6:20. Crowd was dead for this one. Seems to me Bogie used to be more over. Fans called James “Little Rod” for his resemblance to Rod Stewart with that hairdo and British accent. Bogie got a near fall with a powerslam, but James snapped Bogie’s neck off the top rope and hit a springboard spinning elbow to take over. From there it was James cutting off a Bogie’s comebacks. James sold them well. James hit a springboard back elbow, but Bogie reversed him on the pin attempt. Bogie went for his finisher. James escaped. Bogie hit it the second time around, a lame fisherman suplex, no neck bridge or anything. I don’t know what he calls it. The Imperfect Plex maybe?
Quentin Michaels Esq. entered the ring to break it down in simple terms for the simpletons. He said Michaels Inc. (consisting of Hot Like Lava, Hooligans, “Sir Scrappy” and “crown jewel” Johnny Swinger) was kicking bums and taking names. A fan said something about Jerry Oates. Michaels said he died a year ago. Sonny Siaki came out. He led the crowd in a “weasel” chant for Michaels. Siaki begged to differ with Michaels, as he beat Swinger in a no hold barred match last week. Siaki dared Michaels Inc. to do something about it. Michaels said he didn’t need any help and slapped Siaki. Before Swinger could retaliate on the slime, Swinger and Cru Jones attacked Siaki. David Young hit the ring with a steel chair for the save. Young said they wanted Jones and Swinger. Scrappy made the match.
(2) A. J. Steele (with the Intern) beat Randall Johnson in 5:47 to retain the GCW Interstate Title. Steele got a legit pop. Johnson jumped him. Steele planted Johnson with a belly to belly suplex and gave him a beating. Steele’s shoulder rammed into the post when Johnson stepped aside. Johnson hit a missile dropkick for a near fall before zeroing in on the shoulder. Steele suplexed his way out a short arm scissors. Steele on the comeback with a flying shoulder block. Johnson rolled Steele up using the tights for an excellent near fall, given that nobody believed he was going to win. Steele hit his version of the Black Hole Slam and won it with the Steele City Bomb. A good showing by the champ. His finishing sequence looked damn impressive.
(3) Frankie Valentine & Tex Monroe beat Hooligans (Devin & Mason Cutter) in 18:30. Better than you would think. Certainly way better than I expected, especially for such a long match. It had the best sustained heat of the show. All of these guys have improved, especially Valentine. Hooligans played chickens*** heels. Valentine and Monroe worked on Mason’s arm. Mason tucked his head scary late on a back backdrop and bailed. Hooligans got heat on Monroe. The crowd got behind Monroe when he kicked out of Mason’s slingshot senton. Mason used a standing moonnsault and Valentine made the save. Hooligans kept referee Randy Ray from seeing a tag. Devon used a wheelbarrow suplex. Monroe hit a springboard huracanrana, but couldn’t make the tag. Tandem northern lights suplex by Hooligans, and Valentine saved again. Monroe with a blockbuster. He hot-tagged Valentine. They wasted no time going to the finish, a double flapjack followed by Valentine’s patented step up elbow drop.
(4) Scotty Beach beat Orion Bishop (with Wicked Nemesis) via submission in 9:53. Also surprisingly good. Easily the best technical match of the night. Bishop is a badass who is getting over with brute strength, stiffness, and plain old hard work. It sure ain’t his good looks. The girls still scream for Beach. I’m liking Beach more as a babyface. He didn’t get duped, which he used to do on semi-regular basis. He was all about quickness and strategy. Beach used an armdrag to set up a cross armbreaker. The crowd was getting off on Bishop’s power moves. Bishop used a single leg crab followed by a leg DDT. Bishop gave Beach a high velocity knockdown Irish whip, and the middle turnbuckle exploded on impact. Very cool. The ring seems to make a habit of coming apart during Beach’s matches. Bishop went for a Liger Bomb and Beach countered with a triangle. Bishop powered out with a one-armed powerbomb. Rally time. Beach made Bishop tap to the Crippler Crossface. For real. Nemesis tried some chicanery and Beach put him the crossface as well. I take back what I wrote about liking Beach as a babyface.
(5) Sonny Siaki & David Young beat Johnny Swinger & Cru Jones (with Quentin Michaels) in 24:15. Young informed Swinger his zipper was down (and it was). Swinger said he wasn’t falling for it. He got a “zip it” chant. Michaels told Swinger the horse was going to get loose. Sophomoric but funny as hell. The rudos got nada for almost 10 minutes, as the babyface team outwitted them at every turn. False heat on Young and then it was all out war against Siaki. Jones got a two count with a Russian legsweep. Michaels Inc. chicanery with a grounded headscissors, but referee Jeff McGowan finally caught on. Nice strike exchange between Jones and Siaki here. Siaki nailed Jones with a superkick at the 20 minute mark, but Michaels Inc. cut him off. Swinger went to the high rent district. Siaki socked him in the gut. Young cleaned house. Lariat on Jones and Swinger saved. Four way action. The heels attempted a double lariat. Siaki pulled Swinger out, and Young hit the spinebuster on Jones.
Hooligans hit the ring to make it a 4 on 2 beatdown on Young and Siaki. Beach tried to make the save and got the beatdown. Michaels joined the party. Michaels Inc. froze in their track when they heard the music of DeathRow. The monster from the Institute for the Criminally Insane came to ringside and got all bug-eyed. Death was attacked from behind by Kodiak, a thickly muscled powerlifter type. Kodiak left DeathRow laying on the platform deal they use for Polaroids. The babyface side was annhilated. Michaels Inc. taunted Death on the way out. Death rose up and the heels ran for their stinking lives.
NOTES: Next weekend is a double shot for GCW with the return to the Bloomfield Recreation Center in Macon, Ga on 11/30 along with the regular Saturday night show in Phenix City… GCW Heavyweight Champion Bull Buchanan will be in Japan for several more weeks…Thug Rowe missed the show due to a non-wrestling schedule conflict…GCW hopes to expand their television show to an hour in the near future…Diane Hewes said GCW plans to join NWA Anarchy in circulating petitions to protest the regulations being proposed by the Georgia Entertainment and Athletic Commission. The GAEC has scheduled a public hearing in Atlanta on December 18. The regs are set to go into effect on January 8. If they go into effect as written, it will spell the end to independent pro wrestling in Georgia. For more information and a copy of the protest petition go to www.georgiawrestlinghistory.com.
By: Larry Goodman
Courtesy of www.1wrestling.com
Great Championship Wrestling ran their weekly show in Phenix City, Alabama under less than ideal circumstances. Their ring announcer quit, one of their tag team champions got stabbed, and their heavyweight champion is on unscheduled tour of Japan.
This was something of a smoke and mirror show. They couldn’t do much around the titles with Bull Buchanan in Japan and one half of Hot Like Lava, Shaun Banks at home recuperating. No Chris Stevens either (that always sucks), but they did well with what they had, which was Michaels Incorporated aplenty.
Attendance was no better than 75. The low turnout may have been related to heavy competition from the Alabama/Auburn game. The good news was these people were the diehards, and they were hotter than most of the larger crowds I’ve experienced at the Gr8 Sk8 Plex.
GCW Commissioner Scrappy McGowan opened the show gloating about how he was responsible for the firing of ring announcer Billy Roper.
McGowan introduced Charles Neal as the new ring announcer. Neal brought up his participation in the “Voice of GCW” contest. A few factoids Neal didn’t mention: a) he finished third b) winner Steve Neal ended up getting fired and c) the second place finisher was Roper. I mostly remembered Neal because attended the shows at the old building in Columbus wearing a mask. He looked astoundingly like a smaller version of “Assassin” Jody Hamilton.
(1) “80s guy” John Bogie beat Ruben James in 6:20. Crowd was dead for this one. Seems to me Bogie used to be more over. Fans called James “Little Rod” for his resemblance to Rod Stewart with that hairdo and British accent. Bogie got a near fall with a powerslam, but James snapped Bogie’s neck off the top rope and hit a springboard spinning elbow to take over. From there it was James cutting off a Bogie’s comebacks. James sold them well. James hit a springboard back elbow, but Bogie reversed him on the pin attempt. Bogie went for his finisher. James escaped. Bogie hit it the second time around, a lame fisherman suplex, no neck bridge or anything. I don’t know what he calls it. The Imperfect Plex maybe?
Quentin Michaels Esq. entered the ring to break it down in simple terms for the simpletons. He said Michaels Inc. (consisting of Hot Like Lava, Hooligans, “Sir Scrappy” and “crown jewel” Johnny Swinger) was kicking bums and taking names. A fan said something about Jerry Oates. Michaels said he died a year ago. Sonny Siaki came out. He led the crowd in a “weasel” chant for Michaels. Siaki begged to differ with Michaels, as he beat Swinger in a no hold barred match last week. Siaki dared Michaels Inc. to do something about it. Michaels said he didn’t need any help and slapped Siaki. Before Swinger could retaliate on the slime, Swinger and Cru Jones attacked Siaki. David Young hit the ring with a steel chair for the save. Young said they wanted Jones and Swinger. Scrappy made the match.
(2) A. J. Steele (with the Intern) beat Randall Johnson in 5:47 to retain the GCW Interstate Title. Steele got a legit pop. Johnson jumped him. Steele planted Johnson with a belly to belly suplex and gave him a beating. Steele’s shoulder rammed into the post when Johnson stepped aside. Johnson hit a missile dropkick for a near fall before zeroing in on the shoulder. Steele suplexed his way out a short arm scissors. Steele on the comeback with a flying shoulder block. Johnson rolled Steele up using the tights for an excellent near fall, given that nobody believed he was going to win. Steele hit his version of the Black Hole Slam and won it with the Steele City Bomb. A good showing by the champ. His finishing sequence looked damn impressive.
(3) Frankie Valentine & Tex Monroe beat Hooligans (Devin & Mason Cutter) in 18:30. Better than you would think. Certainly way better than I expected, especially for such a long match. It had the best sustained heat of the show. All of these guys have improved, especially Valentine. Hooligans played chickens*** heels. Valentine and Monroe worked on Mason’s arm. Mason tucked his head scary late on a back backdrop and bailed. Hooligans got heat on Monroe. The crowd got behind Monroe when he kicked out of Mason’s slingshot senton. Mason used a standing moonnsault and Valentine made the save. Hooligans kept referee Randy Ray from seeing a tag. Devon used a wheelbarrow suplex. Monroe hit a springboard huracanrana, but couldn’t make the tag. Tandem northern lights suplex by Hooligans, and Valentine saved again. Monroe with a blockbuster. He hot-tagged Valentine. They wasted no time going to the finish, a double flapjack followed by Valentine’s patented step up elbow drop.
(4) Scotty Beach beat Orion Bishop (with Wicked Nemesis) via submission in 9:53. Also surprisingly good. Easily the best technical match of the night. Bishop is a badass who is getting over with brute strength, stiffness, and plain old hard work. It sure ain’t his good looks. The girls still scream for Beach. I’m liking Beach more as a babyface. He didn’t get duped, which he used to do on semi-regular basis. He was all about quickness and strategy. Beach used an armdrag to set up a cross armbreaker. The crowd was getting off on Bishop’s power moves. Bishop used a single leg crab followed by a leg DDT. Bishop gave Beach a high velocity knockdown Irish whip, and the middle turnbuckle exploded on impact. Very cool. The ring seems to make a habit of coming apart during Beach’s matches. Bishop went for a Liger Bomb and Beach countered with a triangle. Bishop powered out with a one-armed powerbomb. Rally time. Beach made Bishop tap to the Crippler Crossface. For real. Nemesis tried some chicanery and Beach put him the crossface as well. I take back what I wrote about liking Beach as a babyface.
(5) Sonny Siaki & David Young beat Johnny Swinger & Cru Jones (with Quentin Michaels) in 24:15. Young informed Swinger his zipper was down (and it was). Swinger said he wasn’t falling for it. He got a “zip it” chant. Michaels told Swinger the horse was going to get loose. Sophomoric but funny as hell. The rudos got nada for almost 10 minutes, as the babyface team outwitted them at every turn. False heat on Young and then it was all out war against Siaki. Jones got a two count with a Russian legsweep. Michaels Inc. chicanery with a grounded headscissors, but referee Jeff McGowan finally caught on. Nice strike exchange between Jones and Siaki here. Siaki nailed Jones with a superkick at the 20 minute mark, but Michaels Inc. cut him off. Swinger went to the high rent district. Siaki socked him in the gut. Young cleaned house. Lariat on Jones and Swinger saved. Four way action. The heels attempted a double lariat. Siaki pulled Swinger out, and Young hit the spinebuster on Jones.
Hooligans hit the ring to make it a 4 on 2 beatdown on Young and Siaki. Beach tried to make the save and got the beatdown. Michaels joined the party. Michaels Inc. froze in their track when they heard the music of DeathRow. The monster from the Institute for the Criminally Insane came to ringside and got all bug-eyed. Death was attacked from behind by Kodiak, a thickly muscled powerlifter type. Kodiak left DeathRow laying on the platform deal they use for Polaroids. The babyface side was annhilated. Michaels Inc. taunted Death on the way out. Death rose up and the heels ran for their stinking lives.
NOTES: Next weekend is a double shot for GCW with the return to the Bloomfield Recreation Center in Macon, Ga on 11/30 along with the regular Saturday night show in Phenix City… GCW Heavyweight Champion Bull Buchanan will be in Japan for several more weeks…Thug Rowe missed the show due to a non-wrestling schedule conflict…GCW hopes to expand their television show to an hour in the near future…Diane Hewes said GCW plans to join NWA Anarchy in circulating petitions to protest the regulations being proposed by the Georgia Entertainment and Athletic Commission. The GAEC has scheduled a public hearing in Atlanta on December 18. The regs are set to go into effect on January 8. If they go into effect as written, it will spell the end to independent pro wrestling in Georgia. For more information and a copy of the protest petition go to www.georgiawrestlinghistory.com.